Was Brittany Murphy Murdered?

Was Brittany Murphy Murdered?

Actress Brittany Murphy died four years ago. Why are some people now calling it murder?

Brittany Murphy’s death shocked her fans around the world. On December 20, 2009, the “Uptown Girls” and “8 Mile” star was found dead—a result of pneumonia, anemia and prescription drug intoxication, according to the coroner’s examination.

Foul play wasn’t suspected until recently when Murphy’s father, Angelo Bertolotti, commissioned a lab report, which he says shows high levels of heavy metals that exceed the high level poison ranking defined by the World Health Organization. “I have a feeling that there was a definite murder situation here,” he told “Good Morning America. “It’s poison, yes, I know that.”

According to ABC News, the report obtained by Bertolotti stated: “Testing the hair strand sample identified as ‘back of the head’ we have detected ten (10) heavy metals at levels above the WHO high levels recommendation. If we were to eliminate the possibility of a simultaneous accidental heavy metals exposure to the sample donor then the only logical explanation would be an exposure to these metals (toxins) administered by a third party perpetrator with likely criminal intent.”

The report has not swayed the Los Angeles Coroner’s Office, which stands by its initial report on Ms. Murphy’s death.

“I’m not going to rest until my daughter’s untimely demise is properly investigated, which hasn’t happened so far. Her case deserves more than a superficial glance,” Bertolotti said in a press release.

But Murphy’s mother, who claims Bertolotti was absent from much of their daughter’s life, says the idea that her daughter was murdered is unfounded. “We will never know for sure,” she wrote in an essay published by the Hollywood Reporter. “However, we do know the Los Angeles County Coroner did extensive tests and found that she died of natural causes.”

Bertolotti theorizes that Murphy (and her husband, Simon Monjack, who died five months later) was poisoned with heavy metals. But one of the most obvious signs of heavy metal poisoning—lines on the fingernails—were not visible during the coroner’s autopsy.

And why is her estranged father convinced she was murdered in the first place?

RadarOnline reports that Murphy’s husband, Simon Monjack, was a conspiracy theorist who “disappeared after 9/11 and bizarrely later claimed he’d been working as a secret government advisor to then British Prime Minister Tony Blair, a close pal has revealed.”

According to the anonymous source, “[Monjack] was a hysterical conspiracy theorist who believed among other things that 9/11 was an inside job and that he was constantly being followed by government spies,” the source said. “After the September 11 attacks, he told his family and friends that he was secretly advising Tony Blair on British government defense policy, even though he had no credentials in that field or experience! He even had fake passports with various identities. He was a sociopath who used all this bullish*t in his life to exploit and manipulate others.”

Whether or not Monjack was working for the British government or not, it’s still unclear why that would lead to his and his wife’s murder. Bertolotti isn’t giving up though. “Vicious rumors, spread by tabloids, unfairly smeared Brittany’s reputation. My daughter was neither anorexic nor a drug junkie, as they repeatedly implied,” Bertolotti said. “I will not rest until the truth about these tragic events is told. There will be justice for Brittany.”

Jill Ettinger is the senior editor and featured columnist on EcoSalon and sister site Organic Authority. Jill’s writing has been featured in The Village Voice, MTV, Reality Sandwich and Global Rhythm as well as the anthologies “Towards 2012: Perspectives on the Next Age” (2009, Tarcher/Penguin) and “What Do You Believe?” (2009, Outside the Box).
A focus on food policy, veganism, wellness, music and world cultural expressions, Jill blends the mystical and modern as she explores what our shifting food, fashion, culture and creative landscapes will look, sound and taste like in the future.
Jill spent more than a decade as a sales and marketing manager in the natural foods industry and regularly consults with and supports emerging brands and organizations in creative communication, social media and event production.
She lives in Los Angeles with her husband and future foodie, their daughter Imogene. Twitter @jillettinger | www.jillettinger.com.

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